breakfast broth(s)
the prompt
what’s the hot version of a breakfast smoothie? a morning beverage that’s delicious, nutritious, and perfect for those on the go.
the invention of the smoothie goes back to the 1930s when Julius Freed (or some say his real estate agent) came up with this breakfast alternative due to digestive issues
the moodboard
aesthetically, i look to tea for inspiration because there’s so much ritual involved and it goes across cultures and socioeconomics. they’re also somehow healthy and indulgent.
the experiment
originally, i had big ambitions to do three different types of broths — sweet, savory, and herbal. and then invite a number of taste testers to evaluate them on the visual, textural, and flavor spectra. unfortunately, that same week i got hit with food poisoning and a jam-packed weekend of camping and birthdays (no, i’ve learned nothing from covid in terms of pacing myself for social activities).
but here was the plan.
constraints included:
kelp as the base for all broths
must be sippable. this means it can’t condense to the bottom (miso soup), must be utensil-free (no chunky soups with solids), and it must have the right viscosity (no mashed potatoes).
it’s for breakfast. this is a pretty wide open one and we want folks to evaluate how likely they’d be to drink this first thing in the morning.
nourishing = filling + healthy (or at least perceived to be)
tasty
we came up with a couple of things to cook up:
golden milk++: turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, fresh ginger, sweet white miso, kombu, agave
shii: blended kombu with silken tofu + shiitake mushrooms
kulfi: pistachio milk, rose extract, saffron, cardamom powder, kelp
so we only got to do one of the broths, but i did cook it in the morning and had my housemates try some!
on the right is the broth without any thickener or milk and on the left there’s one with almond milk. the reviews were few and mixed. i didn’t sweeten it at first and folks expected it to be sweet for a variety of reasons — that it was called golden milk, that it was served in a mug like a latte, and generally the flavors lended themselves to a sweet profile. some liked it but found it too strongly flavored for the morning.
the beverage/soup divide proved harder and more uncanny than i had expected! #uncannyvalley rears its ugly head once again. [the fact that a smoothie is a beverage and not a soup is a genius branding effort, but probably made easier by the fact that it’s cold?]
discussion
broth experiments to be continued! some wilder ideas to try include pairing broths together as an offering (e.g. a dynamic duo of nut broth (thick, hot) + kelp tea (thin, cold)). also lea fell in love with saison’s “tea bouquet” of fresh flowers one stirs into hot water. from here, we thought of perhaps an herbal bouquet + broth lollipop.
my overall takeaway is that i need to do more #userresearch about breakfast. it’s a complicated thing full of contradictions. folks want ritual, but they also don’t have time. you want it to be healthy and light but also to sustain you through lunch and taste comforting (which usually means salt and fat).
from last week’s questionnaire, people generally seemed excited about breakfast broths or “hot salty breakfast tea” as my friend ellen so eloquently put it. most of you who replied positively about this concept self-identify as culturally east or southeast asian in part. coincidence? i do find that there are more examples of savory breakfast staples in these cultures (think jook, pho, dimsum).
those of you who felt negatively about breakfast broths, tell me more — i want to hear from you, too.
what’s next
next week we’ll take a smol detour into some whimsical territory with a random smattering of silly food product ideas.
shout outs
@maddox for criticizing my use of lower case for everything
@cougz @mia @wy for taste testing golden milk++
@chu @lea for a foresty walk and brainstorm
@all of you who told me about your breakfast routines. i love hearing about all your food ideas in general, too. keep em coming.
asks
what do you think about this newsletter design? pls be honest. i promise you shan’t hurt my feelings.
what were some of your favorite, enchanting childhood candies or foods?
what movie or cartoon foods do you wish were a reality? basically all studio ghibli stuff am i right (more ponyo below).